Applied Predictive Technologies

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Applied Predictive Technologies
IndustrySoftware as a service
Founded1999[1]
Founder
  • Jim Manzi
  • (Chairman)[2]
  • Anthony Bruce
  • (CEO)[2]
  • Scott Setrakian
  • (Managing Director)[2]
HeadquartersArlington, Virginia, United States[1]
Number of employees
600
Websitewww.mastercardservices.com/en/solutions/test-learn

Applied Predictive Technologies (APT) was a software company that provided business analytics software, designed to help large, consumer-facing businesses "reduce the risk of any new initiative by systematically testing the idea with a subset of stores, customers, or employees."[3] APT was acquired by Mastercard in 2015 [4] and no longer operates as a standalone business.

APT argues that using systematic testing enables companies to measure the true incremental impact of any new initiative.[3]

Its "core value proposition is helping clients innovate more effectively through trial and error."[5]

History[]

APT was founded in 1999 by business consulting executives Jim Manzi (Oliver Wyman), Anthony Bruce (McKinsey & Company), and Scott Setrakian (Oliver Wyman).[6] Of founding APT, Manzi explained to The Washington Post that "a lot of the work I was doing as a consultant was very repetitive. I realized how much of it could be put into a software model.”[7] With venture capital from Devon Partners, it took Manzi and Bruce less than a year to develop and launch APT’s software tool. In 2006, the firm was backed by Accel-KKR, a private equity firm.[8] In 2013, Goldman Sachs invested $100 million in APT.[9]

APT was acquired by Mastercard in 2015.[4]

Software[]

APT's (now Mastercard's) software takes a statistically rigorous test and learn approach to business analytics, in which proposed changes are tried out on a small scale and then analyzed before being implemented everywhere. APT's approach follows a larger business trend, evidence-based management, in which the scientific method is applied to business decision making. APT's software automates the cycle described by the Harvard Business Review:[10]

  • Create a hypothesis
  • Design a test to gather information about the hypothesis
  • Execute the test
  • Analyze the test to determine how successful it was and what factors explain performance differences
  • Plan the rollout based on the analysis of the test

APT's software was noted in 2009 for its ability to present both a high-level summary of a test and deep analysis of the specific attributes that affect performance in the test.[11]

In February 2011, APT was awarded a patent that protects its core analytic technology for designing an in-market test and on matching test stores to control stores.[12] APT has since lost its key patent when it was invalidated in 2020 by the US District Court. [13]

Products[]

The firm provides its products as web applications Its current products include .[6]

  • Test and Learn for Sites (its flagship product, focused on analyzing remodelings, sales promotions, pricing strategies, and other changes made at the store level),
  • Test and Learn for Customers (focused on analyzing direct marketing and other customer offers),
  • Network Planner,
  • Market Basket Analyzer,
  • Merchandise Optimization,
  • Menu Optimization,
  • Category Management Insights,
  • Test and Learn for Ads.[14]

Competitors[]

MarketDial, a Utah-based company founded in 2016 by ex-BCG and -McKinsey consultants, is the only direct competitor in this space. MarketDial aims to differentiate itself from APT Mastercard by offering a platform that leverages machine learning and a more modern technology stack.

Clients[]

Named one of the top 10 tech companies to watch in 2012 by American Banker,[15] APT's clients span a wide range of industries and include Abercrombie & Fitch, Wendy's, Starbucks, Subway, Kraft Foods, Royal Bank of Canada, and more than 40 of the Fortune 500.[16] APT's Test and Learn for Sites software has been used for Wawa's tests on adding personnel,[11] IHG's tests on capital upgrades and promotional offers,[17] and Royal Bank of Canada's in-market tests on distribution operations strategies.[18] APT has also done work with Google in analyzing the impact of online advertising on brick and mortar stores.[19]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Applied Predictive Technologies, Inc.: Private Company Information". BusinessWeek. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  2. ^ a b c "APT Management". Archived from the original on 16 October 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  3. ^ a b "Financial Times". Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  4. ^ a b "MasterCard Announces Acquisition of Applied Predictive Technologies".
  5. ^ "The Washington Post: Helping Retailers See If Their Promotions Are Hits or Misses" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  6. ^ a b Hayes, Heather B. (May 2006). "2006 Fantastic 50: Applied Predictive Technologies". Archived from the original on 27 June 2008. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  7. ^ McCarthy, Ellen. "Applied Predictive Technologies Makes Consulting Automatic." The Washington Post 20 August 2001. E5. Print.
  8. ^ "Accel-KKR Portfolio". Archived from the original on 30 November 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  9. ^ "What does Goldman Sachs' $100m investment in APT mean for big data analytics?". 27 June 2013.
  10. ^ Davenport, Thomas H. (February 2009). "How to Design Smart Business Experiments". Harvard Business Review.
  11. ^ a b Fleenor, D. Gail (June 2009). "These Tests Are Positive". STORES Magazine. Archived from the original on 12 October 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  12. ^ "United States Patent No. 7,895,072". 22 February 2011. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
  13. ^ "MEMORANDUM DECISION" (PDF). 25 November 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  14. ^ "APT Products". Archived from the original on 19 December 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  15. ^ "Top 10 Tech Companies to Watch in 2012". 30 November 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  16. ^ "APT Clients". Archived from the original on 25 September 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  17. ^ "IHG Selects APT's Test & Learn Management System". 17 September 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2009.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ "APT's Test & Learn Management System Selected by RBC to Conduct In-Market Tests". 5 October 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2009.
  19. ^ "POS to O2S for ROI... The Evolution of Measurable Media Investments". Google Retail Advertising Blog. 24 August 2009. Archived from the original on 25 September 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
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